The invention relates to a formulation for covering substrates, such as, vehicle panels with a chip resistant, vibration damping coating, a method for forming such a coating and an improved panel having such a coating.
The formed sheet steel wheel wells and floor boards of vehicles, such as automobiles, buses and trucks, are exposed to flying stones which tend to chip the coating thereon and thereby promote corrosion of the underlying steel. Chip resistant coatings, such as coatings of polyvinylchloride, are therefore used to protect these steel surfaces.
When a vehicle travels along a road, the tires of the vehicle generate considerable noise. In addition, the irregularities of the road and the mechanisms of the vehicle, such as the engine and drive train, tend to vibrate the vehicle. The chip resistant coatings currently applied to the underside of a vehicle do not damp such noise and vibration as much as is desired. Considerable effort is taken in the manufacture of luxury automobiles to reduce the noise and vibration sensed by the driver and passengers of such an automobile. For example, noise and vibration absorbing mats are often applied to the interior side of the panels of a luxury automobile underside even though such mats are expensive and are difficult to affix and shape.
It would be an advance in the art of reducing the noise and vibration sensed by the driver and passengers of a vehicle if a coating were invented which was both chip resistant and an improved vibration damper and which could be used not only as a chip resistant undercoating but also applied to the inner sides of the panels of a vehicle.